Label: Earshift Music, 2024
Personnel - Donny McCaslin: tenor saxophone; Adam O’Farrill: trumpet; Matthew Sheens: piano; Ben Monder: guitar; Ross McHenry: bass; Eric Harland: drums.
Australian bass player Ross McHenry takes a deeply introspective turn with Waves, his fifth album as a leader, delivering seven original compositions that exude a cohesive identity. The tracks—describing landscapes and reflecting personal experiences and relationships—are flawlessly executed in the company of a stellar group of New York-based artists that includes two former collaborators of David Bowie: tenor saxophonist Donny McCaslin and guitarist Ben Monder. Trumpeter Adam O’Farrill, pianist Matthew Sheens, and drummer Eric Harland round out the group. The latter two also contributed to McHenry’s previous album, Nothing Remains Unchanged (2020), which featured saxophonist Ben Wendel.
The album opens with the title track, “Waves”, a shimmering piano trio piece where Sheens’ delicate riff is at the base of a winsome melodious theme. With instinctive rhythmic discernment, the pianist employs the right amount of outside notes to make his solo attractive, while McHenry and Harland provide a solid rhythmic foundation. The drummer’s introduction of a hip-hop-influenced groove midway through infuses the piece with a modern fibrillation.
“In Landscape” is paved by Harland’s inventive beat, which, along with the bass flow, exudes a sense of fun and spontaneity. Harmonically at ease, in a solid 4/4 time, the piece gains momentum with the energetic language and groovy ideas of McCaslin, who enjoys a moment of fluid exchanges with O’Farrill before Monder’s mystifying effects add a layer of textural wonder. The melodically compelling “Love and Obscurity” tugs at the heartstrings, with ingeniously expressive solos from Sheens and O’Farrill, who offer the perfect blend of zest and depth. The trumpeter flies even higher on “North of the River”, joined by McCaslin’s pulsating staccatos and effortlessly gliding figures, as well as McHenry’s funkified bass thrust.
The peculiar “July 1986”, which evokes places, family memories, and the premature death of an identical twin brother, is swathed in Monder’s atmospheric layers and volume swells, captured pristinely before he heats up his guitar with pointillistic imagination. Harland’s brushwork, McHenry’s neat bass understructure, and O’Farrill’s poignant solo, all contribute to the settled melancholy.
McHenry treats us to powerful sonic frames containing impactful melodies and lush harmonies that go down easily. Waves bristles with heartfelt sentiment and rich sounds, making it a captivating listening experience.
Favorite Tracks:
01 - Waves ► 03 - Love and Obscurity ► 06 - North of the River